


a tooth for a tooth (ACTIVELY BEING EDITED)

by thesevnthsense



Series: a body for a body [2]
Category: ATEEZ (Band), EXO (Band), NCT (Band), SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - Gang World, Assassins & Hitmen, Camboy Mark, Degratation Kink, Drug Use, Gang Violence, Gay Bar, Heavy Angst, Life Debt, M/M, Multi, Murder, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Past Character Death, Police Brutality, Polyamory, Praise Kink, Rating: NC17, Regret, Sex Work, Smut, Soft Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Sugar Daddy, To Be Edited, Underage Drinking, Webcam/Video Chat Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-15
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:46:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27566968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesevnthsense/pseuds/thesevnthsense
Summary: "how did you manage to lose a tooth? aren't you beyond that phase of life?""shut up, just tell me where the nearest dentist is and how i can become a patient."
Relationships: Kim Jongin | Kai/Mark Lee (NCT), Mark Lee (NCT)/Song Mingi, Mark Lee/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Mark Lee/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas/Lee Jihoon | Woozi, Na Jaemin/Kang Yeosang
Series: a body for a body [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2014993
Comments: 1
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please be aware as you read this, there are many topics that may be rather sensitive or triggering in some cases. as i write this, i will provide a list both here and in the tags of potential content warnings.
> 
> this fic includes: murder, drug usage, police brutality, corrupt governments, underage drinking, smut, and more, to be continued. 
> 
> also, please read an eye for an eye before reading this, as this is the sequel. thank you!

As TN rang in the next new year, it was like they had forgotten that a little over a year ago, they lost one of their Ari. Most of the newer members didn't know him, so they weren't very phased by the passing date, but internally, it hit a couple people a little harder than expected.

Taeyong was hit hardest, along with Johnny and Mark, who both were cooped up in their apartments, ringing the night in silently.

A year was too long a time. It somehow felt like only days since everything happened. Mark tried not to think about any of it. 

He had to move past that loss and continue on with life. By the mere meaning of the phrase, one could say he already had, but if going about every day numbly was moving on, Jaehyun would've been a saint. 

Mark assumed the place Jungwoo was supposed to take. 

He was haunted by the thought of walking into that room, seeing the faceless bodies of two of his former friends haunted as they laid dormant in that room. He didn't know if they were there anymore, or if they weren't, where they went.

He didn't want to know. 

Taeyong had Ten and Yangyang deal with the room to his knowledge. He did his best to stay as far away from that room as they could. 

Taeyong and Johnny figured it would be best to not touch any of his things, even the jacket that was originally Johnny's never got back into his possession. 

There were dozens of new members by then. With the loss of Jaehyun, Jungwoo, Haechan, Winwin and Xiaojun, Taeyong knew whether he wanted more men or not, he needed more. Something like, over thirty men got recruited? A lot had happened since Jungwoo passed. 

TN had a little more to its name by that point as well, which Taeyong liked. There was a little bit of fear going on in the city. Not mass hysteria and panic, but a sense of awareness not present before. Things around the complex moved smoother with more people around to do more tasks. They even had a place in the next city over where a couple of them owned a cafe and tattoo parlour. 

Mark, despite being tired and low, enjoyed the greater presence around the complex. Seeing people around more made him smile a bit. The Amarantus' finally had a couple new people to hang around with, even if most of them were in the next city over at the cafe. They made their way over there a lot to visit them. 

The main Amarantus around complex became Mingi, who Mark had grown rather fond over in the short span of time he had been there. Not a permanent resident in the complex, but he didn't live far enough to need to be. He was a fantastic artist, and many people around had him tattoo them in his spare time. He got money from it, they got high quality art done on their bodies, it was a win-win scenario for them all. 

Mark finally left his room as he saw Johnny and Dean starting up a fire in the centre of the cavern. The two were cracking jokes back and forth, as they had grown to do, while Yixing did his best to work with the mechanics of the building to open the skylights up. It was too cold to leave them open without a fire. It wasn't as warm as the year prior was. 

"Mark! How you doing?" Dean started as he heard Mark's footsteps. Mark gave him that kind of smile where only your mouth curls up, while your eyes don't budge. 

"I guess okay. Happy New year," he sighed back to him. Johnny walked over and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, roughly patting him on the back a couple times. 

"Still bummed out?" Mark nodded. "Well, grab a blanket. Lucas said he'd be out here soon, so you have that to look forward to." Johnny knew Mark and Lucas had grown close since the incident occurred. 

At the smell of smoke, more people started to come out of their rooms, including Lucas. Mark was already sitting on one of the blankets Johnny brought out for them, eating a cookie Jisung brought for the occasion. He said Chenle made them, but he "helped." Mark knew Jisung didn't do much more than bring them. They were good though, so he wasn't about to complain. 

Chenle liked baking, and Jisung was glad he had found something to like other than coding. 

Lucas took a seat beside Mark, his hand accidentally falling on top of the other's as he adjusts how he's sitting, before silently pulling it away. 

"How you holding up?" Lucas asked him, settling into his spot and grabbing a cookie from its place on Mark's knee. He shrugged. 

"Okay, I guess. As good as I can be. I'm glad you're here," he replied, trying to give Lucas a smile. Lucas gave him one back. Mark knew there was a little pain in his smile too, but he was at least better at hiding it. 

Mark watched as a couple of others settled in: Ten, Yixing, who returned from finally getting the skylights open, Taeil, who was also out for the first time in days, Sungchan and Shotaro, Mingi tattooing something on Sungchan's ankle, Sehun, Kai, and Renjun, smoking... something Mark couldn't decipher. All talked amongst themselves, while Mark stared into the fire. 

He was relieved to see the night progress lightly. They all took shots at midnight, even some of the younger ones who technically weren't allowed to drink yet. That was the least of their worries; they'd already caused a whole lot more trouble than underage drinking. 

By two in the morning, everyone was a little tipsy and giggly, having a good time sipping on drinks. Mark had taken one from Sungchan, who had stole his from a local liquor store. He had maybe two left after he offered Shotaro and Ten one each, which they both gladly took.

Lucas was chatting up a storm with Dean, who was going on about the girl he had spent the previous night with. Mark was shocked he hadn't brought anyone to the bonfire. He usually did. Lucas sober probably wouldn't have been interested, but drunk, Lucas was lapping that shit up. 

Even Taeyong had joined them at midnight, offering a shot to Johnny, which they took hand in hand. Johnny was very straight, and Taeyong was very not, but Mark still had his suspicions about the things that may go on between the two of them.

Mark took another sip of his drink before leaning over so his head rested on Lucas' shoulder, turning his head to kiss his cheek. 

"What's that for?" Dean posed, observant though drunk. His words didn't come out as clear as he had hoped. 

"For fuck it. Ya know? Why not? If I wanna kiss Lucas and he's down, why the fuck not?" Lucas' eyes were wider than normal, his interest peaked, but also confused. 

The two kissed. It was nice. Lucas was a good kisser, and Mark liked kissing him. No one else in the room paid any mind to it, so they figured why not. 

So they kept kissing, for a good couple minutes. Intermittent pecks between deeper kisses. Lucas knew how to keep Mark on his toes, even though neither of them would be doing this sober. 

Mark could've sworn he had seen Johnny grab Taeyong's ass at one point too, but with slightly blurred vision, he wasn't sure if he was just seeing things, or if the events were actually unfolding in front of him. 

Shotaro tried to throw an empty bottle into the nearest garbage bin, but missed. The bottle shattered on the floor. The entire group sighed in his direction.

"Hey, no one said I was good with aiming things!" No one said anything. "I'll clean it up in the morning..." 

Lucas reached back and pulled the blanket up over his shoulder, before looking over at Mark. 

"You cold too?" he asked softly, a small smile still tilting his lips. Damn was he cute. Mark didn't need to respond before his body did with a shiver. He pulled the other corner of the blanket over his shoulder, moving closer to Lucas so their sides were almost pressed together, where he laid his head on the shoulder between them. 

Admittedly, he was getting tired, but he knew if he left the party before everyone else did, he'd surely miss the best part. 

The two of them sat that way for a bit it felt, Mark didn't keep track of the time. He just knew he liked it. They didn't speak much to one another, or even the ones around them, just sat and enjoyed the warmth of the fire and each other. 

He was brought back to his senses as a snowflake landed on his arm, melting slowly into a small, cool drop of water. 

"Is it snowing?" Sungchan asked, pointing up at the sky and how the moon was no longer visible. 

Renjun stuck out his tongue, to which Jisung followed in doing. Their tongues were stained red and purple respectively, surely from the drinks they were finishing up. 

"Guess so," Renjun responded after catching a couple on his tongue. Jisung has a smile plastered on his face. The man liked snow, there was no denying that fact. 

Yixing got up and jogged over to the box that kept the switch for the skylights' opening mechanism to close things back up, while Dean grabbed a bucket of water to put the fire out. Yixing knew he'd have to keep them open at least a bit for the smoke to make it out and not trip the entire smoke alarm system. It'd be a cold night in the cavern.

Taeyong and Johnny headed off together, which Mark would have been more suspicious about had he been sober, but it felt normal to him then. 

And Mark knew it was time to call it a night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (just a side note, sungchan and shotaro are grade twelve age in this fic! they've been friends for a while before both showing up at tn!)


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning felt like it started too early, but Mark forced himself out of bed anyway. 10:30 was not early, but he didn't care all that much. He needed to be out by 11, and that was all that mattered. 

It had felt like forever since Mark had been on a run with the rest of the guys. In reality, it was only a couple of months, maybe four or so, but even days felt like years when he didn't leave his room.

Everyone who planned on going on runs that day stood in the cavern, alongside Taeyong who accounted for everyone going out. 

Kai and Sehun were far too excited to get to head out to a jewelry store. Kai liked to pretend to accidentally steal things, but everyone in TN knew he just liked fine jewelry. Taeyong liked the extra money from the pawn shop trips, so he wasn't going to complain either. 

Mark ended up with Doyoung and Jaemin, the three of them on a quick trip for a deal with a woman in town before heading out to a cafe front some of the Amarantus' were running just to check in on them, and no one was going to complain about coffee on a Saturday morning.

There was still a smouldering pile of ash in the center of the cavern, and if there wasn't a wire fence around the entrances, the entire area would've been full of smoke. It stung Mark's eyes, just a little. 

The air was far chillier than Mark had remembered it being the year prior. He didn't remember a lot from the past year, but if there was anything he could do for himself in the new year, it'd be to make some sort of memories and do something with his life.

He blamed himself for a lot of what happened, thinking over all of it once again as he spun the contents of his coffee cup around the mug like one would do with fine wine. He should have just known, he figured. He didn't need a word, he could've just bashed in there.

But he didn't. 

"Cold?" Jaemin asked, trying to bring Mark's attention back to the present scenario. Mark shook his head around a little to try and fling the thought away. 

"A little, but it's no big deal." He pulled up the collar of his jacket, tightening it around his arms a bit. He needed a new one, hopefully sooner than later. The one he was wearing was too small. 

Mark chose to stay in the car while Doyoung and Jaemin did the deal. He got the chance to look out the windows, up the sides of the skyscrapers, like he used to when he walked down the street with his mom as a kid. 

He missed being a kid sometimes. Only sometimes. 

Jaemin opened the backdoor of the car, and bounced in, disregarding the seatbelt entirely and sitting in the center of the two seats. 

"How'd it go?" Mark asked, staring ahead of him at a crack in the road. 

"Like a piece of pie, easy," Jaemin responded, dropping his backpack in the space on the floor between the driver's seat and the back seat. 

"That's not how the saying goes, Jaemin," Doyoung commented as he took his place in the driver's seat.

"Eh, who cares smartass." Jaemin rolled his eyes. It wasn't that he and Doyoung didn't get along well, cause they did, it was just that Doyoung could be a little... snooty to say the least. 

Mark chose to stay quiet for the drive. Jaemin and Doyoung only spoke to go over directions and change radio stations. 

The cafe front some of the Amarantus kids ran, Peaches and Creme, was actually a cat cafe, as per San's request. Mark didn't like cats much, but he wasn't too opposed to seeing the boys who worked there. They were all around his age, give or take, so he felt a little closer to them than he did some of the other new folks who came in. 

As soon as the three of them were able to take a seat, Hongjoong was beside them, holding a tiny kitten in cupped hands. 

"You look like you need a little friend, this is Coconut. She's a new resident here," Hongjoong stated, bending over a little to take the cold cup of coffee from Mark's hand. Mark kinda wanted the cat gone, but despite that thought, took the kitten from Hongjoong's hands and placed her on his lap, gently petting her. 

Coconut must've taken note of Mark's reaction, as she hopped down from his lap to the floor, where she started to rub against his ankle for attention. He wasn't about to succumb to such a tiny thing. He figured as soon as he gave in, she'd bite him and then he'd like cats even less. 

Doyoung was beyond hard at work already, finishing up one of his papers for school while petting an orange striped kitten on his lap. Mark knew he wasn't going to be much help, but there wasn't much that needed to get done anyway.

"Sorry to abandon y'all so soon, but I've got somebody waiting on me in the back. Their name is Kye, ask the blue haired one who comes out to see it," Hongjoong pointed out, before getting up. "The one in the skirt will take your order, I'll let him know you're here."

By the one in the skirt, he meant Yeosang, a bright-eyed boy with far more potential than the gang had given him. It was almost a shame that he had made it in. He could've done so much better than them.

Yeosang shuffled over rather quickly after his brief chat with Hongjoong, giving soft smiles to the three of them, Jaemin first.

"What would'ja like?" he asked them, bubbly and bouncy in tone. The skirt he wore swayed as he did. Jaemin couldn't help but smile a little.

"Cute..." he mumbled under his breath, resulting in a light colored blush tinting Yeosang's cheeks. "A chai?" Mark and Doyoung both got iced matchas. 

Yeosang knew he was cute, but something about the way Jaemin said it made it feel a little different.

The three sat and drank and talked, as they had for New Years, just this time with Yeosang and Jaemin playfully hitting on each other the entire time, Doyoung doing schoolwork, and Mark staring into space again.

"How are _you_ doing, Mark?" Yeosang asked, bringing Mark's attention back to the room. Mark let out a breath before taking a sip of his tea. He didn't know how to answer that question.

"I'll take your silence as not great."


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Mark finally asked Taeyong to open up his job. 

He had decided after Jungwoo died that maybe he should pick up something new. He liked working with Yuta, and being his apprentice gave him a lot of weapons knowledge, but he felt like he should take something new up. Taeyong now had an empty place as an Ari ,and Mark hoped someday to fill it, but for the time being, he settled as a camboy. 

At first he was a little shy about the concept, but with the ample amount of time Taeyong gave him to recover, he knew he had to get back to work sooner than later. By the time he was actually faced with the prospect of doing his job, he actually became quite fond of it, despite having not done it. 

At least not yet.

He made sure the next morning, as soon as Taeyong opened the job up, to look and see if anyone had requested a show from him.

Nothing, unsurprisingly. 

Thankfully, the app was rather easy to use. No one said Mark was inept when it came to technology, but he wasn't good at maneuvering through endless tabs to get to requests either. The simplicity was appreciated. 

Taeyong had never had anyone with a role like what Mark was wanting to pull off, but even he found it interesting. It seemed like a surefire way to make money, and if Mark liked doing it, he saw no problem with making it a more official option. 

Mark's phone pinged from across the bed. He forced himself out of bed to grab it, where it glowed softly with the logo of the app he downloaded earlier.

He had a request. Already. 

Someone named Jay had requested him. Beginners luck maybe. He wasn't going to complain about it. Though he was not excited to do a show for who he assumed would be an old man.

But it wasn't.

Jay was young-looking, maybe even Mark's age, if not a couple years older, and extremely handsome, at least from his profile photo. Maybe this wouldn't be all that hard, Mark figured. 

Minus having to slot out from six to seven at night from his nightly plans. That was if he had any, and he didn't. 

Mark knew people used fake photo's all the time, so he didn't have his hopes too high.

Six o'clock rolled both too quickly, and not fast enough. 

Mark was the first one to turn his camera on, as he situated himself in a "legs criss-crossed" sort of position with his hoodie covering most of his body. He smiled a little as he watched Jay pop up on screen.

"Hi!" he started, trying his best to think of the right words to say. "It's nice to see you here, thank you for joining!" 

"What, did you think I wouldn't?" Jay responded, followed the a small, endearing chuckle. Mark was in awe. This man was even prettier than his photos lent for him to be. He pushed his mask up a little bit. 

Jay was laid on his stomach, casually resting his head on one of his hands. His bangs, just a little too long, obscured his eyes just slightly. 

"Sorry, I've never done this before," Mark mumbled, his mouth partially covered by his hoodie sleeve. "What should I call you?"

"I... ah... I didn't think this far into this... Jay is fine. Maybe I'll give you something new to call me if you do well this time," Jay explained. If anyone else had told him that, Mark would have been rather upset, but there was something about this man. Jay bit at his lip, either nervous or mutually attracted to Mark.

"Alrighty then Jay! You can call me Em, or baby, whichever makes you happy." Mark pulled his knees in toward his chest. He wasn't wearing anything under his hoodie, but that wasn't something that was easy to tell from just being on a screen.

"Maybe if I get indecisive I could call you Baby Em? Oh god, that was so bad I'm so sorry." Jay shook his head at the rough attempt at a pun, but Mark got a bit of a laugh from it. Mark was curious as to why Jay wasn't wearing a mask too, but he figured he just didn't have as much of a reputation to keep. 

"You're a lot more gentle than I expected. I must admit, you're setting the bar really high." Mark gave him a reassuring smile as he let his knees down, picking up a pillow and hugging it instead.

"Oh no, don't you get me wrong Pretty Thing, I'm not soft or gentle. you just said it was your first time, yeah? I'd hate to be so rough and demanding on a newbie if he didn't want it," Jay assured him. Mark took in a sharp breath of air. _Pretty Thing._ That was a name he had called Lucas before, but wow, did it resonate being said to him. 

"Well, I may be a sweetie but I'm not made of sugar, you don't have to be so light with me."

"So I should tell you what to do and stuff, yeah? Demand you around? I'm kinda new to this too." Jay sat up, adjusting the camera so it could still see his face, effectively cutting off at his waist. 

"It's your stream, I'll do what you say. Within limits of course, but I'd like to think you read those over before requesting me." Mark rocked side to side a little, still hugging the pillow. He saw something switch in Jay's persona. It was like he literally hit a switch, and became more intimidating. Despite having experienced it minimally with Lucas, he liked that. A lot. 

"Well well well, I do like the sounds of that. Get rid of that pillow for starts. I came to see you, not feathers."

"I mean hey, if you wanted to see feathers, I have some really cute angel wings I wore last Halloween I can go get."

"Stop trying to distract from the topic. I wanna see you now." Mark knew there was no more messing around. "You'll have a lot more fun with me without some pillow in the way, or with angel wings. But I promise I'll send you to heaven." Jay followed his far-better executed joke with a wink. 

"That's a bold statement, can you hold that promise up?"

"I assure you, I can. Now pillow, down." Mark listened. 


	4. Chapter 4

"You're fucking stunning. You get excited to be like this in front of a total stranger? You know nothing about me, yet you're so turned on over there that you're breathing heavy." 

"N-no..." Mark lied with brightly blushed cheeks. Both were rather obvious. Mark had never been the best liar, and in the state he was in, was even less of one. 

"I know that's a lie, and you better not lie to me again or I'll hang up this call right now." Jay knew how Mark mark wanted him by that point.

"I might've... just a little."

"That's it. I figured as much." Jay sighed, pushing his hair back as he adjusted how he was sitting. "Only a little? Well that's rather disappointing. Show me what you were doing before you called me, Em." Something about being called Em made Mark shiver. Though he tried to hide it mainly, his hand went down to finally touch himself, just barely. 

"I may have used more than just my hands..." Mark alluded, which drew a smirk to Jay's face. 

"Then go on, get what you need." Jay almost shooed Mark off camera to go grab what he needed. It took mere moments for him to return with a small vibrator. He set it beside him, before laying down on his side and reorienting the camera so it showed his entire body. 

Jay tilted the camera up a bit more, obscuring any movements he could have been making from below his chest. The angle was awkward, and Mark knew he was trying to hide something. Mark sighed softly as he pushed the toy into himself, the noise turning into a soft whine as he turned it on. 

"Damn baby, are you that sensitive? Turn that up a little higher." Jay pressed his lips together as he stopped speaking. 

Mark didn't listen at first, instead directing his attention to Jay, still hiding his now obvious movements. 

"Can I hear you too? I know it can't be just me getting off here..." 

Jay's eyes darted open, his hand stopping. 

"Shit, uh yeah. Sorry, I wasn't sure if you were wanting to see me get off too."

"Fuck, why wouldn't I? You're so attractive." 

"Alright, alright Baby, enough flattery, turn that dial up. You're too composed for my liking." Mark does so, turning the tiny dial more than before. The action is followed with a moan as he pushed up harshly into his hand, now wrapped around his cock. 

"Fuck that's sexy..." Jay sighed, his head falling back. But he immediately brought it back, keeping his eyes focused on the screen, and on Mark's hand. "You like me watching you play with yourself?"

"Pause for a second," Jay stated abruptly, leaning back against his headboard. "Can I call you names?" Mark turned the vibrator off, looking up at the screen.

"Names?" Mark replied, confused. 

"Yeah, like whore, or slut. Something like that," Jay explained, and something inside of Mark seemed to stir. 

"I've never been called any of those. You can try it?"

"Alright, thanks Em." Jay sighed rather loudly, pushing his jogging pants down to expose his boxers. "Now turn that toy of yours back on. Maybe a little higher if you can." Mark nodded incessantly. 

"M-mhmm... oh fuck... I-I wish it was your hand th-" Mark cut himself off before he could finish his sentence, feeling what he planned on saying was probably not very professional. He was already too attached, and to a man he would most likely never see again.

"You wish it was my hand baby? I mean, I'd definitely be more involved than just using my hands though." Jay smirked a bit, and Mark had to do everything in his power to not let the thought form in his mind. His hand went back down to his cock, thrusting up into it, and Jay found the same rhythm himself. "M-move your hand faster Baby... and turn up that vibrator. I want you to be a mess for me." Mark let out a soft noise at hearing Jay's words alone, before curling up a little and turning the dial a little more as a louder sort of yelp fell from his lips. 

"Hmm.. you're such a good boy, Baby. You barely even try to act up... did you cum before? While you though about someone watching you fuck yourself like this?" Mark shook his head, and Jay's previous smirk grew even larger. 

"That's a good boy... you looked so cute and innocent before, but goddamn... just look at you now..." 

"I'm always soft and cute, what makes you think otherwise?" Mark asked, bringing his hand up and shyly making a show out of licking the precum off of one of his fingers. "I'm just as pure as you make me out to be." 

"Jesus christ... you are one dirty little slut... I don't make you out to be anything close to pure right now, and I think you're still far too composed. Turn it up higher." 

Mark pressed his thighs together, before accidentally letting out a sharp, higher pitched moan as he turns the vibrator up. He covered his mouth, embarrassed by the action. "I-It-It doesn't go higher," he tried to get out, his legs starting to shake from the pleasure.

"Mmm... you sound so pretty when you moan like that baby, don't cover it up." 

Mark, despite knowing he'd probably be told off for it, took his hand away from his cock, bringing it back to his side as he ground up into nothing. 

"Don't you hide from me, Baby. I wanna see how much of a dirty little whore you are. Getting so turned on while I watch you... are you so needy that you don't even need me in the same room for you to finish?" Jay moved his hand faster, and Mark was tempted to join back in, but he knew he didn't want to. 

"Y-yes... I'm so close-please let me cum, I need it-"

"That's it," Jay hums, extending out the first word as he tangled his hand into his hair and pulled slightly to ground himself. "Finish for me like a good boy, let me see you." Mark unfurled himself a bit more, and Jay's head fell back, banging against the top of the headboard. He barely registered it, and neither did Mark. 

Mark's body writhed around a bit as he finished, louder noises filling his room. He had no idea when or if Jay finished too, but he assumed he did after he grabbed a cloth to clean himself off. 

"Damn, you did so well baby..." Jay sighed, both of his hands resting behind his neck, as if he had to hold it up.

Mark giggled a little, grabbing his sweater from the floor, as well as the cloth he left there to clean himself off. "T-thank you, you really set the standards high I think." Jay yawned, in a way Mark found incredibly adorable. 

"I did?" Jay's cheeks flushed a light pink, and Mark smiled as he noticed. 

"Awe look, you're blushing!" he cooed at him, watching the hue turn darker. "But yes, definitely. I also didn't expect to have someone as soft and cute as you are for my first private streamer either. Or someone as hot as you are..." 

"I'm not soft or cute, you just haven't seen that side of me." Mark let the sleeves of his sweater fall over his hands as he tilted his head a bit. 

"Well, I think you are... I wish you were here to cuddle. I think you'd give good cuddles. You look snuggly." 

"I don't know how you'd feel about cuddling an actual stick figure, but if that's what you deem cuddly..." Jay trailed off. 

"No no no, I want to be cuddled, silly boy. I'm not a good big spoon. I'm not all that tall. " 

"It's okay, neither am I. But obviously I would really like to hold you and play with your hair or something for being so good. Make sure you take care of yourself well after this, okay?" 

"Ahhhhh, don't flatter me like that!" Mark whined, laying his head down on the pillow he was holding earlier. "I... um... don't know how long you wanna stay on this call for. It's kinda up to you."

"You deserve to be treated well for being so good, and um... I don't know. I'm sure you have other things to do." 

"Nope actually, I've got nothing else planned for tonight. My night was just yours. And frankly, since you're not awful, I don't mind staying longer."

"Ah yes, the best designation of not awful. I'm honoured."

"I-I didn't mean anything bad by that. I more so meant that I expected people to be gross. Like, perverts? But you don't seem to be like that. You're nice."

"If you wanna think that, I'll let you. That'll make one of us, Doll..." Jay yawned, slouching down a little bit as his eyes seemed to flutter open and shut. 

"You sleepy?" Mark asked, giving Jay a second to reply before he tapped the screen to try and wake him. He hummed something incoherent, scrunching his nose slightly. 

"Go to sleep, Sweetheart. Don't let me keep you up." Mark smiled at the sleepy demeanour of the man he was on the phone with. Jay mumbled another set of somethings, before his head fell forward and he was forced awake again. He shook his head a little in efforts of waking himself back up, looking around the room and then back at the screen. 

"Oh my god... Did I fall asleep? I am so sorry, oh my god I'm a dumbass." Jay continued on apologizing, and Mark kept assuring him it was okay. 

"Don't worry, Hun. You can go rest. Like I said, don't let me keep you. I'd rather you rest. I'm sure you lead a busy life and you probably need it." Jay looked a little upset at the statement, but nodded either way. It took him a moment to form a response.

"I don't particularly want to, but it is rude of me to have forced you to watch me sleep!" Jay responded, followed by a small smile. 

"Don't worry baby, I'm sure we'll be back soon. Now go rest, maybe request me again later if you feel like it. I wouldn't mind talking to you again."

"Ah... well alright then, I do hope we can talk again... I've enjoyed your company. And uh... the show," Jay said, rather softly as he waved at the screen in a dorky kind of way. 

Mark waved back, a soft sort of sadness filling him. He realized then that that was how his job was going to work. 

"Goodbye, new friend Jay," Mark replied, taking his mask half off. He knew the action may be risky, but he trusted it enough to not fully reveal him, and it didn't. "Sleep well!"

"Uh-hey! Wait a second. I sent my number in the chat. I'd like to stay in touch, but I'll leave it up to you," Jay abruptly stated, just as Mark was about to hang up.

"I-you'd-thank you-" Mark stuttered out, his cheeks a bright red now. "I most certainly will." Jay gave him another, brighter smile, before ending the call. 

Mark shut his laptop and laid back onto the bed. 

"That was... amazing..."


	5. Chapter 5

Mark was woken up the next morning by a knock on his door. 

"Come in!" He tried to yell, though his voice just came out groggy and low. Carefully almost, the door opened, and Lucas peered his head in. His jacket was half done up, and a big scarf covered up his neck and about half of his face. 

"Shit, sorry. Did I wake you up?" he asked, tilting his head, still peering in.

"Yeah, but it's okay. Come on in. It's cold out there," Mark responded. Lucas stepped in, closing the door behind him. He took his boots off at the door, and hung up his jacket. 

"I had a show last night," Mark stated, rather abruptly, but he was still rather excited from it. Lucas' eyes opened a little wider. 

"Oh? How'd it go?" he posed, and Mark smiled as he came and sat down on the edge of the bed. 

"Actually, amazing. The guy's name was Jay. He gave me his number after even." Lucas let out a sort of chuff. He wasn't a big fan of Mark giving other people shows, especially when he was interested in him. 

The two had had sex before, Mark topped, it was great. The both of them had a blast, but not a whole lot had came from it after that. Other than what happened on New Year's at least.

"I'm glad it went well, Baby," Lucas responded, slouching so much that he could rest his head in his hands.

"Baby?" Mark questioned, sitting up too, but still under the covers. 

"I-uh... sorry. Slip of the tongue." Lucas looked down at the floor, never at Mark.

"Hey, if there's something you wanna tell me you can," Mark tried to suggest. He knew something was up, even if Lucas didn't originally show up to talk to him about it. 

"I don't think I should," Lucas replied in a way that felt too empty for the situation.

"Okay, but you can," Mark insisted, slipping back under the covers. Lucas didn't move, and the silence that filled the room felt far too dense for either of their likings. 

"I'm in love with you."

"You... what?" Mark wasn't sure how to respond. He kind of knew, but in the same sense, was in denial about it because he was polyamorous, and that turned a lot of people away from him. 

"I'm sorry," Lucas told him, sighing as he stood up. He figured it was probably time to leave. 

"You know I'm polyamorous though, right? And you don't mind? Like, that doesn't scare you or anything?" Mark asked, grabbing his hand to stop him from going anywhere. Lucas was forced to face him now. 

"Of course I don't mind, that's just how you are. I know you'd talk to me about that kinda stuff before anything happens, and you know I'm more independent anyway. I don't know if I'd be enough to satisfy you even if you weren't," he assured Mark, trying to give him a smile. Mark knew he wasn't happy. 

"Hey, don't say that..." Mark told him, softly, almost in a whisper. The way Lucas looked like he wanted to cry made it feel like the sun hadn't risen yet. The blinds were closed. 

"It's okay if you don't feel the same... I get we were just friends with benefits," Lucas replied, nodding softly with his eyes closed. He wasn't exactly an easy crier, but that felt like the time. 

"No, no no. I do feel the same. I just don't want you to be overwhelmed or uncomfortable if I bring up dating someone else," Mark pulled himself out from under the blankets. He moved so he sat next to Lucas, thigh to thigh, with his hand on the small of his back. He drew senseless designs over Lucas' t-shirt. 

"I won't be," Lucas tried to assure him, but Mark wasn't so sure still. "Who knows, maybe I'll like them enough to start dating them too." He even managed a little chuckle from that one. 

"Are you sure? I really don't want you to be uncomfortable or upset," Mark continued to insist, but Lucas shook his head as he took a deep breath in. He finally managed a smile and Mark could've sworn the entire room lit up. 

"I wouldn't be. It's you. Like I said, I'm not super clingy anyway. I'm not the jealous type," Lucas assured him, turning a little so he could actually look at his partner without straining his neck. Another silence filled the room, but this one felt like snowflakes: a little chilly, but pleasant overall. 

"And you don't mind my work?" Mark broke the silence once again, shrugging his shoulders a little. He didn't let his eyes meet Lucas', until Lucas tilted his head up with a finger under his chin. 

"I'd be a dick if I did." Mark finally smiled too. 

"Alright... well if you get uncomfortable I need you to tell me, alright Lucas?" 

"That's Babyboy to you, Angel."


	6. Chapter 6

Johnny was incessant upon going to a bar that night, and even though Mark didn't feel all that up to it, he came along. 

Johnny wasn't much a "bar fan" but after seeing how Mark had been acting, he figured maybe he needed to get out and live a little more than just in TN. Life as a part of a gang was eventful, but nothing like the freedom of the outside world. It wasn't even busy, just taxing on the public image. 

But when they got out, boy did they make their time worth it. 

There were maybe seven or eight guys with Mark, including Taeyong, who had managed to find the time to give himself a break for once, and Johnny and Dean, both of which had smoked a good amount of weed before leaving. Johnny may have gotten over his alcoholism, but that didn't mean he forgot about other options, and when Dean came into the picture with a tendency to smoke and a cool personality, Johnny was all over it. 

The room was somehow dark, but bright at the same time. Though he couldn't make out the faces of anyone around him, he could see they were all there from the moments he was able to catch their eyes or hair or clothing in the flashing lights. The entire club seemed to vibrate with the music, and though he was almost pressed against the people around him, that was the least of his worries as he danced.

Mark was actually a pretty good dancer, that was, if he was doing something choreographed. Dancing in a club, he looked a little awkward. He'd only been to clubs a couple times in his life, and he did his best to fit in by copying Dean as he danced. 

He was surrounded by the smell of sweat an alcohol, but it came across in a way that was far more appealing than when the cavern smelled like sweat and alcohol. This smell meant fun, he couldn't say the same for the cavern. 

After only twenty or so minutes of being there, Dean and Mark had already lost most of the men they came with. Johnny and Taeyong weren't too far from them, but neither him nor Dean wanted to be anywhere near him. Those two were closer than they had ever been to each other, Mark thought, body to body, grinding on each other. Mark may have liked men, and found both of them rather attractive, but watching his friends grind on each other was where he drew the line.

Dean and Mark found a place at the bar, where Dean carefully sipped at a rum and coke, and Mark took his sweet time deciding what he wanted. He didn't have time to decide. 

There was already a drink in front of him.

"The guy at the end of the bar bought it for ya," the bartender informed him. Mark looked down at the drink. He hadn't seen anything like it before, but who was to say he could even see the color of it. 

"What is it?" Mark asked him back, having to yell over the music. 

"A whiskey fix," the bartender responded. "Good choice if you ask me. You'll like it, it's impossible not to like." 

Mark went to take a drink of it, before Dean stopped him. 

"Where'd you get that?" he asked, observing the glass and its contents. 

"Guy down the bar bought it for me," Mark responded. 

"Did he get it before you?" Dean continued to pose. Mark shook his head. "Alright, I'm just watchin' over you, Lil Bro."

"I'm not your Lil Bro, I'm just Mark." He took a sip of the drink as he sat, holding it out to Dean who also took a drink.

"Eh, you're practically my Lil Bro at this point. Taeyong calls you that all the time, and if you two are brothers, I'm at least a cousin I'd hope. That's how family works." Dean chuckled a bit, mostly hidden by the music. 

"Aight, aight Big Bro, shut up and come dance," Mark started, getting up from his seat and leaving his half-finished drink for the bartender to clean up. 

"I don't think you know what you're doing," Dean replied, starting to get back into the music. 

"That's fine. I don't need to clearly." The two danced for a bit, both of them having too much fun to care if they were dancing well or poorly. 

Anything Mark could have been planning, if he was, was forgotten when someone placed a hand on his waist. He turned around, mainly to see if he needed to move so someone could get by or if he was hit accidentally, but he was met with dark eyes looking back at him.

"Pleasure to meet you in person, Em."

Mark couldn't really make out who was talking to him, or how he knew him.

"Am I interfering with something?" another voice from behind asked him, but that one Mark at least recognized. It was Kai, with an arm now draping over his shoulder.

"I'm um... not sure."

"No," the man responded for Mark, before turning away and walking back into the mass of the crowd.

"Who was that?"

"I can't tell ya. That was really weird."

"What did he say?" Mark proceeded to explain, or more so just say what happened since there wasn't much to explain, the briefness of the situation to Kai, who appeared just as concerned as he was.


	7. Chapter 7

Kai ended up taking Mark home, worried that someone may have been harassing him. He wanted to keep him safe, and even though there was nothing Mark needed to be kept safe from, he didn't need to know that.

"Sorry I wanted to head out so soon, I was worried about that guy," Kai explained briefly. He pulled the car into the parking lot, and put it in park in one of the further spots from the building. 

"Why?" Mark asked. He zipped his jacket up as the chill hit his throat. It was windy, and cold enough to snow. 

"I don't know, was worried he'd hurt you or something."

"You know I can fight, right Kai?" Mark punched Kai in the arm to prove it. 

"Hey! Fuck you!" Kai yelled at him, as Mark started to run ahead of him, laughing. "Get back here!" 

Mark made it in before Kai did, and made it to his place before Kai did. 

"Beat ya," he stated, slightly out of breath from the short run. 

"Yeah yeah. Let me let you in." Kai fumbled with his keys momentarily before finding the right one and unlocking the door. Both took their jackets and shoes off, and took a seat in the two armchairs, half facing each other, half facing the TV.

"Do you want a milkshake?" Kai asked, getting back up from his seat even though he had just sat down. 

"I've never had a milkshake, what's in it? i mean, I assume milk, but what else?" Mark asked him back, tilting his head slightly in curiosity. 

"You've never had a milkshake?" Kai questioned, astonished. Kai didn't know a whole lot about Mark's past, and how he got to where he was at the time, but he figured he'd had to have at least had a milkshake at some point in his life. 

"No, I didn't have much access to such luxuries as a kid," Mark replied, shrugging his shoulders. Kai walked into the kitchen, his footsteps echoing through the vaguely empty room. 

Kai's room was nicer than most of the other rooms Mark had seen. Even his wasn't fantastic looking, but Kai made sure to keep his looking nice. It was evident he really wanted a space to call his, in a place he called home. 

"It's milk - I prefer almond milk - ice cream, and whatever else you would want in it. I like cherries or pineapple in mine. Or sometimes half a banana and some chocolate sauce too, it makes it taste like a banana split."

"I've never had one of those either..." Mark mumbled, now feeling kind of embarrassed for not knowing what rather "common" treats were. 

"Oh, we have to go out and get banana splits sometime soon, Mark. They're life-changing." Kai started to compile all of the things needed to make his milkshakes, putting them all into the blender. Mark had never owned a blender, but he never needed one either. 

"Why did that guy call you Em? Have you dealt to him or something?" Kai asked from the kitchen. Mark only went by Em around people who couldn't know his name, or shouldn't know it. Private stream guests and hostages mainly. 

And that's when he put the pieces together. That person had to have been Jay.

But it was impossible, he thought. There was no way the man he had done a show for lived in the same area as him. The likelihood of that was so small Mark couldn't fathom it. But it couldn't have been a hostage. Hostages set free were given amnestics so they wouldn't be able to rat out The Neighbourhood. 

Jay was the only option.

"I don't know," Mark lied, slouching into the cushion below him. 

"We have a job to do tomorrow, did you hear about it?" Kai bounced from topic to topic pretty easily, but Mark kinda liked that about him. Nothing ever got boring with him around. His eyes were stuck, focused on the clock. It wasn't like he had to follow the hands move, it was digital, a tiny alarm clock on the bedside table that he was given when he came in, but had never used. If he ever needed an alarm, it was always set on his phone. 

"No," Mark responded. "You have details on it this early?"

"Yeah, Taeyong let me know since it may be a little more work than we're normally out for. We gotta go check up on some debt some guy has with us? We gotta make sure he pays up."

"Or what?"

"What do you mean or what? Ten kills a member of their family or something."


	8. Chapter 8

Mark didn't know what time he left Kai's place. All he knew is that when he got back to his place, he immediately crashed on his bed in the clothes he had worn all day.

He woke up to the sunrise, barely peeking in through the crack in his blinds. He rolled over the wrong way, staring into the sliver of light, and covered his eyes. It certainly was bright out, the brightest it had been in days, bright enough to come through the skylight and bounce into his room.

At that early a time, it wasn't as pleasant as it could have been.

He had to leave at 10:00 to meet up with the rest of the guys for 10:15. Luckily for him, it was only 7:00, and he had ample time to get ready and get out of the clothes he had now worn for over twenty-four hours.

Despite the fact that he had no ambition to, he forced himself out of bed and into his kitchen. He grabbed a granola bar from one of the cupboards, staring at it for a moment. He didn't remember buying them. The box didn't look like anything he had ever seen before. He wasn't sure of the brand, and had he even looked at the box when he assumed he bought it, he probably would've grabbed a different one. Needless to say, they weren't good, and he couldn't take more than a bite before throwing it out.

Maybe he could convince one of his friends to take them. There were still four or five left in the box, so if anyone had really liked them, they'd have at least a couple days worth of snacks. 

He tossed the rest of the granola bar into the garbage bin - or tried - but missed. The bar landed about a foot short. 

"Lucky I'm not faced with throwing knives often," he mumbled to no one but himself. "I should work on that." 

After picking his failed attempt up, he walked off to turn the shower on. His shower specifically took too long to heat up, and he knew he'd have to give it a couple minutes. 

He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. He looked lonely, if a person was able to look that way from only an expression. Not only did he look it, he felt it. Sure, he had gotten close to Taeyong and Dean after Jungwoo and Haechan had passed, but something almost forced him to distance himself from Johnny. He didn't want to, but there was something in him and how he acted that reminded him too much of Jungwoo. 

It gave him nightmares, that day. Nightmares of walking into that room, seeing the faceless bodies of his two former friends laying dormant in that room. Frankly, the ghostly image of that haunted most of his dreams.

He hoped the two were living somewhere well in heaven, but he also knew that wasn't the case. Maybe they were fucking shit up in hell together. 

He tried not to think about it.

Instead, he focused on himself, standing in the mirror still, shirtless. A large scar across the upper right side of his chest that never fully healed from a knife fight he got into at the wrong time, muscles that weren't so defined anymore. He was half the man he used to be, if not less. 

He had fallen behind on a lot of his life. There were copious amounts of things he used to do, but none of them really felt like things he would do now. Maybe he grew up some over the year, or with Jungwoo's passing, he didn't know the distinctions anymore. 

"You miss him, huh?" Mark could practically hear his friends saying it, sometimes even Haechan if he thought about it hard enough. It made him sick, thinking about Haechan taunting him like that. 

He had no idea how Taeyong dealt with that situation, and that was another thing he chose not to dwell on. 

He pushed himself into the shower, the water too hot, but on his sore body it felt nice. Yesterday, though it hadn't been much, wrecked havoc on his body. If only I wasn't so fucking anxious, he thought, knowing in one part of his mind that it was normal to be so nervous. The other couldn't excuse it. 

His shower was less than satisfactory to say the least, but he was glad to be clean and have at least a bite of granola bar in his system. 

"Note: get a new breakfast alternative," he muttered under his breath. He remembered things better if he said them aloud, as if he was telling someone to remind him. He wished someone would remind him instead of having to remind himself. 

He could text Jay, thank him for the day prior, but he wasn't in the mood to come up with some cutesy, generic text response to a man whose number he wasn't even supposed to have. 

He figured he wouldn't get a response anyway, but he figured why the fuck not. 

**em** \- _hey, this is em, thanks again for yesterday_

Now all he had to do was await a response, and that took far longer than he had hoped for it to. 

Mark was on time, if not early, to meet the others at 10:15 to head out. Ten, Dean, Kai, Sehun, and Johnny were all at the entrance before him, leaving only Jeno and Lucas to show up. Johnny wasn't coming along, but wherever Dean was, Johnny was too, at least for the time being. 

Johnny was the best driver of the eight of them, but since he wasn't coming along, Lucas opted to drive, and Dean offered to drive a couple people too. He didn't drive too many places anymore, ever since he found a place of complex that he liked and never resigned the lease for his old place. Dean drove everywhere, back and forth from complex on a daily basis, but that didn't mean he was a great driver. Jeno and Ten went with Dean.

Mark sat in the front seat, where he could hold Lucas' free hand as he drove, while Kai and Sehun sat in the backseat. Lucas ran his thumb over the top of Mark's hand. He was almost able to feel his pulse from where he was sitting. 

Mark already felt off, and Lucas knew. 


	9. Chapter 9

Dean paced back and forth a couple times, looking at each of the floorboards he stepped on as they creaked under his weight. 

"So, uh... money? How are you planning on coming up with it, if you 'don't have it now'?" Ten spoke fluidly, and with confidence. Mark still wasn't used to Ten speaking in such a way, even though he'd seen the man work before. "We don't wait for debts longer than stated. Extensions aren't options here, I thought we made that very clear from the start."

The man in front of him stuttered over the words he planned on saying, as if he had anything he planned to say, but Ten didn't let him before he started to hum. It was a signature thing, similar tunes to one another but never really the same. 

Ten had a music box back on complex that he used during kidnappings, but he could never quite mimic the tune off of complex.

Using a nursery rhyme in the way he was felt so wrong, so cruel, but the twisted smile on his lips kept Mark in check. This was his job, and Mark had surely seen less of it than the others had, but it still concerned him every time he saw how much Ten got from it. 

"D, wanna do the honours?" Dean didn't need to respond, just wrapped his fingers around the handle of the gun, not his, but now his. Usually, Ten would have taken up the role of doing the killing, since he usually did, but more recently Dean had been stepping up and Ten liked giving him chances to improve his craft.

"Let's make this quick, yeah? I have shit to do," Dean mumbled, looking down at the barrel of the gun he was holding. "And you two know if word gets out about any of this, you'll end up in the same place. Don't fuck with us, unless you want to be next." The two nodded, wiping tears off their cheeks. One crouched down onto the floor, head in his hands as he sobbed. "It's time to go. Be wise."

Mark knew that last statement was for him as well, not just the two standing. 

Most of the people who were there originally had left already or were never in the place in the first place. Mark, Dean and Ten were the only ones left, and Mark was soon to leave too. 

He saw nothing as he closed the door behind him, pulling his mask back up over his face a little better. He made his way back over to the truck where Lucas sat, still in the driver's seat, patiently waiting to leave. 

"How'd it go?" he asked, placing his hand over Mark's as soon as he was situated in the front seat of the truck. 

"Well, we'll see in a couple weeks, right? Hopefully we don't die." 

"We never die." Mark choffed at that response, and Lucas knew he had said something wrong. 

"Sure we don't," Mark replied, the sarcastic tone in his voice prominent. Lucas didn't choose to say anything back, he just ran his thumb over the back of Mark's hand as he did on the way there. 

Their actions were interrupted once again when one of the back doors opened, and Kai hopped into the truck, scooting over so Sehun could follow after him. 

"Where were you guys?" Mark asked the two of them.

"Causing trouble." Sehun poked Mark's shoulder, following the action with a playful elbow to Kai's side. Mark knew little about Sehun. The man was sometimes really quiet, but sometimes really bubbly. 

Lucas started to drive, Kai and Sehun playfully bickering in the back seat. Lucas was doing his best to hum along to the radio, and Mark stayed silent. 

It had been almost an entire day, and he didn't get a text back yet. It was then he realized he probably wouldn't be getting a text back at all. Camshows were a business after all, and who was to say he could get attached to anyone he did shows for.

It was a shame though, Jay was kinda special. 


	10. Chapter 10

"Good morning Angel," the voice on the other end of the phone began. The call was a rude awakening, and Mark was still too far asleep to know what was being said to him. "Sorry I wasn't able to message you back yesterday. Duty calls, you know. I hope I didn't worry you any."

"Huh..." Mark groaned, his voice groggy and flat with sleep. "Who are you..."

"Shit... I'm just realizing what time it is. I'm sorry, I get my days started really early and I wanted to talk to you to make sure you weren't upset about me not texting you back. It's just Jay." His words came out a little too fast. If they came out any faster they'd have probably been incoherent. 

"It's okay..." Mark yawned mid-sentence. "How are you?"

"I'm alright, didn't sleep much last night but what can we do. How about you? You feelin' okay after a couple days ago?" Jay replied. Mark forced himself to sit up, stretching his arms into the air with his phone on speaker, laid down on the bed beside him. 

"Shut up, I didn't feel too bad day of. My friends even convinced me to go to a club that night." Mark wasn't sure he should bring that up. Would Jay be offended if he knew his drink was shared, and not even finished? Would he bring it up at all?

"Ooh, that's interesting." The two paused for a moment, Mark expecting Jay to bring the encounter from the gay bar up. But he never did, he only brought up coffee.

"Come make breakfast with me," he insisted, before ringing the phone again to a video call. Mark was nowhere near ready for a video call: shirtless, messy-haired, and not even really wearing pants, just boxers. 

Without a second thought though, he answered it, standing there in front of the camera half-nude and face uncovered. 

"Shit," he mumbled under his breath, darting out of frame to find something to cover his eyes at least. 

"What is it?" Jay tilted his head in the direction of the camera, but Mark wasn't looking that way. 

"I'm not covered up," Mark half-yelled from across the room.

"You don't have to be if you don't want to be. Especially now that we'll be seeing more of each other, but it's up to you," 

The silence felt like radio static, like anything could go wrong at any moment and it would terrify Mark for years on end. He was tempted to hang up. How was he supposed to respond? What if Jay ratted him out? Who was he to be trusted so easily? 

But Mark did it anyway, walking back into frame, face uncovered, but at least with a shirt on this time. 

"I figured I should let you know I'll probably be scheduling you again soon," Jay abruptly pointed out, followed by the clinging of a spoon against glass, assumably the stirring to coffee. Mark hadn't had time for another show in between this upcoming one and the last one he did for Jay. That's what he got for being new, he supposed. "Oh, and uh... don't worry about doing shows for others, I'll keep you as financially stable as you need to be."

Mark froze in place. 

There was no way Jay knew what he was getting into with that statement, or that he could afford the lifestyle Mark wanted to live, even as a part of The Neighbourhood. He couldn't just out himself to this man. He was already on camera not wearing a mask over his eyes. There was no way he could give his identity away, he would be fucked if he did. Doomed.

"Em? You still there?" Jay asked, leaning in close to the camera to make sure Mark was still in frame and not frozen or gone. Mark brought himself back to his senses. 

"Sorry, yeah. Zoned out a bit, but yeah. That sounds okay with me. I'm pretty low maintenance."

"Don't worry about any of that. If you want something, it's yours." Mark was lost. How the hell did he manage to get himself a sugar daddy without even asking or looking for one? Was he supposed to get off of that app now? How was he going to bring that up to Taeyong? He knew Taeyong wouldn't mind much as long as he never gave his information away but it was still a scary topic to bring up. 

Mark did all he could not to panic externally. He could ask eighteen million questions in his head, but Jay didn't need to know any of them. All of it was for him and him alone. 

"Yeah, I guess that's okay. I'll have to talk it over with a couple people though."


End file.
